The Peruvian player Darki might be lesser known players participating in the BW Reunion Tournament. The Protoss player has been around for a long time though, representing Peru at the WCG of 2005 and 2006. In the interview, Darki gives us his thoughts on the past, present and future.
Can you introduce yourself to us?
Hello, my name is Alfredo Zegarra also known as Darki. I played Starcraft: Brood War for a long time and retired around 2007. I qualified for the WCG in San Francisco , Singapore and Monza and used to be a top latin american player. Right now I make a living playing poker in cash games, playing between $1/2 and $3/6 stakes.
When and how did you start playing Starcraft?
I started when i was in high school. I used to play 4v4 on BGH after school with my friends. When I first played Starcraft I instantly loved the strategy and the challenge involved, and just wanted to be the best. Soon after I discovered WCG and the chance to get a free trip to other countries which sealed the deal for me. I was really excited to win that!
I can understand that! Why did you choose to play Protoss and was it related to cannon rushing?
I originally played random, but it was really annoying that no one wanted to play against R so I decided to just focus on one race. I noticed my Protoss was better than my other races so thats why I picked it, and no not because of cannon rushing!
It's okay, you're allowed to be in denial. What's been your best BW experience?
I think when I won WCG peru for Singapore. Not the year before because due to a bad course of events my visa to the USA to play in WCG San Francisco was refused. I was so pissed because at that time I felt my skill related to others was pretty good and also because I felt others were to blame. We applied for a group visa, but due to the guy responsible for the request they didnt listen to us and refused everyone. After that I was so frustrated I prepared my hardest to win WCG Peru the following year and I did even though people prepared specifically against me like Josez (A Peruvian player that won a game against Boxer on WCG), but he didn't succeed hehe!
I also remember an international tournament in Chile where amongst others a korean gosu called h_paul_x decided to go to. I remember telling my parents I was so sure i was going to be at least top2 for $2.000 and I managed to get the money for the trip at the last moment, which was a relief as I was really broke at the time. I even started that tournament losing because of a mouse malfunction, but managed to get to the finals winning against players like HellGhost, Keir, and others. Luckily a fellow Peruvian player eliminated Paul so that helped me. In the end I remember playing some long games against Odin from Brazil that i ended up losing 3-2, but it was still an amazing experience.
That sounds awesome. So now you're preparing for the BW Reunion Tournament. What made you decide to join?
I decided to join because 3 days after the announcement a friend somehow convinced me to reinstall BW to play some games against him. It was so fun and I had a lot of nostalgia feelings that i decided to play more and more its very addictive haha! Then I saw a friend who posted the link to this BW reunion tournament on Facebook and I was like: What a great idea, I want to play!
Is there anyone you want to face in particular?
Not really, I just want to play the best I can and if I lose, I'd lose playing my A game.
Don't you want to be the best Peruvian once again? I heard there's this cocky Peruvian Terran that thinks he's waaay better.
Hehe, that would be nice, but as I said I just want to play my best. I don't care against who.
So now it's time for the more serious questions. If you could choose who you were stuck with on an abandoned island with one other player in the lineup, who would it be?
Probably Lamer since I remember he was a fun dude. Back in WCG Monza I remember him annoying TechnicS a lot. It was fun! haha
And which player would you definitely want (or not) at your poker table?
Hmm, I definitely wouldn't want Mondi if he plays poker because I assume he'd be good. All Germans are very good at poker.
What's your favourite type of food?
Ceviche (Peruvian sea food). It's raw fish cooked in lemon juice with onions and sweet potatoes.
+ Show Spoiler +
What's an important life lesson you want to give along to our readers?
Hard work > Skill
Any last words before we close out the interview?
I want to thank you for having this great idea and spending your time to make this a great tournament. I just want to have fun and hopefully reach my potential for this tournament. I will practice for this!
The Brood War Reunion Tournament will start on Saturday, Aug 23 3:00pm GMT (GMT+00:00) and is sponsored by Silky Goose Studios.